Like the Crow Chasing the Butterfly
by Mystical'Scythe
Summary: "Butterflies are very delicate. If you touch one, you could risk its life being lost. But, if you be careful, you can hold it for as long as your heart wishes..."


So this is my little story, pretty much an Aeris/th x Cloud one. If you aren't a fan please don't go on and on about Zack x Aerith, because I'm not a fan of that.  
I really dislike Tifa, honestly.

I like this couple, it's cute and obviously tensioned love.  
I've rated it M, as I do with most of my stories.  
In the end, I always like to put a nice lemon ;D and I'm thinking of making it a little bloody and gory, with swear words and naughty things like that. Yeah, lol.  
Enjoy xD I don't own Final Fantasy BTW!  
3  
-

Blue birds began to sing ever so sweetly as they danced around the pink cherry blossoms, creating a beautiful spring-like atmosphere. A small hand reached out to touch one of the gorgeous butterflies that join the birds on the Japanese flowers, but failed as the winged creature flew away in tune with the birds' voices.

Marlene sighed at this. She wanted to touch that special little insect, and keep it for her own. Tifa, noticing the little girl's disappointed face, took it in her hands to ask what was wrong.

"Marlene, it's such a nice day. Why are you frowning, sweetie?"

The little girl turned to the woman who was practically her mother, and forced a slight smile. She shook her head as if nothing was wrong, and they both noticed how every movement seemed to be in harmony with those birds again.

"It's nothing, Tifa!" Marlene giggled. "I wanted to touch a butterfly, but they're so fast. I probably could've grabbed it, but... they just look so gentle."

Tifa gave a warm, motherly smile and laugh to the younger girl.

"Why do you want to touch a butterfly, Marlene?"

"They're pretty."

"So are many other animals and insects. Why a butterfly?"

Tifa kept her motherly smile, knowing where she was going with this. Marlene furrowed her eye brows for a while, then looked back up at Tifa.

"Butterflies are different. I'm not sure why, Tifa; they have something about them that makes me feel happy. Watching them is like the feeling of freedom. I thought maybe if I could touch one, the feeling would extend..."

Tifa stood up straight and took the little girl's hand.

"Butterflies are very delicate. If you touch one, you could risk its life being lost. But, if you be careful, you can hold it for as long as your heart wishes. That feeling... the feeling you get, Marlene... will stay with you for ever. It's in your heart, not your head."

Marlene nodded with her sweet, childish smile, then tightened her grip on Tifa's hand as they ran into the house to join Denziel in whatever he was doing.

The great trees bristled with a strong but hot breeze, stating that summer time was near. A few petals from the blossoms flew down from the greatest of trees, landing their way on the stone concrete ground in abstract patterns. The butterfly that Marlene had tried to hold fluttered up into that great tree, and sat itself up onto the highest branch.

_I would've loved for you to have held me, Marlene... But you, and maybe even Tifa, could've sensed who I was... Or at least, it's possible you could have..._

The wings of the lovely insect fluttered again as it took flight. One with the wind it became.  
-

On the silent, rocky hills of one of the many deserts out there, one noise in particular could be heard. At first the site of the still beige sand lay still, a few crows pecking hungrily at the dry sand, looking for food. The next, in the distance, a soft motor sound could be heard. And as it got closer to the crows, the more weary they became.

Eventually, the sound grew unbearibly loud, and the birds flew away just in time before the reason for the sound struck them down. A large vehicle, resembling a motorcycle zoomed over the spot the birds had once been pecking at, and carried on down the desserted desert roads.

_Why do I keep doing this...?_

The voice inside of the driver's head asked in a calm, but clearly agitated tone.

_I'm just running from everything. I know... I should move on, be happy, help Tifa with the kids. But I'm not happy. And I'm not gonna lie to myself that I am. _

His lips tightened as he picked up speed, now eager to get to his destination even more.

_Something that I really need to understand, though, is... Why am I not happy? _

He never did understand why. He'd thought it all through so many times before, trying to find what made him so unhappy. The SOLDIER gave it another try as his short journey carried on. Back when he and Zack - once his best friend, now dead - were eager to become SOLDIERS. Unfortunately, they were oblivious to what became of them.

But even back then, he was a young man with a steady heart and a comforting smile. He and Zack were more alike back then than he had ever thought before. When Zack died, it did change him slightly inside, but not the type of change that he was thinking of right now. He knew even after that, he was still able to have a laugh and not want to be alone all the time. Not even Tifa was able to make him happy anymore, and whenever he thought of this he felt guilty. He knew his childhood friend had feelings for him. But he could not accept them, nor repay them.

Tifa was a friend to him, nothing more. She was close, friendly, and very trustworthy. He'd always protect her, but loving her more than the love he felt for Marlene and Denziel was too far in his opinion. He loved the three as if they were his siblings, not his wife and children.

He shook off the thought of Tifa thinking differently to that, and decided to stop the selfish thoughts. Hating himself even more wouldn't be healthy for him when he was meant to be staying focused on the road.

The vehicle came to a stop. Left against some old rocks outside of where his destination was. A few blocks of walking, and he was there. Looking up at the beautifully tall building, he sighed. His gloved hands pushed through the doors, and he let them shut behind him with a silent bang. Two heavy boots made their way down the isle of the church he stand in now. When they got to the rows of many stunning selections of flowers, he stopped. Looking down at them, his peaceful eyes locked on the site of a magnificent winged butterfly, delicately lying on the petals of a white rose. As if the butterfly had noticed him stare, it began to flap its wings, taking flight into the air until it had reached the top of the church beams, and the SOLDIER could not see the creature anymore.

_What is this feeling? It's as if the butterfly was all I came here for, but..._

A great sensation attacked him then. Pure white surrounded his vision completely. His body stood still, as did the flowers; the church was now a brightly lit field, filled with even more amazing flowers to look at, and a gorgeous, blazing orange sun shone down to give them affection.

_"Cloud,"_

A strange whisper said in his mind. Although, it felt like it was truly said. Cloud looked around the field he now stood in properly, and had to glance a second time, his mako infused eyes stretching, when he saw a figure a few feet away from him, sitting in the midst of buttercups and daisies. Then, he heard a peaceful humming, soothing his ears. The astounding voice was coming from that figure in front of him, but he could not make out who this was. The sun was getting brighter, almost white!

"Cloud!" called the figure, stopping from its tune of humming. It did not turn around from what Cloud could see. But it called him over... And... somehow, he felt as though he knew that voice. No. He definitely knew this voice. It had been years since he last heard it this clear, despite the strong memories but... that voice. So beautiful. So clear. It was her. The reason.

"Are you going to stand there staring at me or are you coming over?" she giggled playfully.

Cloud did as he was told, and slowly strode over to her, fearing it was just a dream. He did not want to be too hurt when he woke up. But that's all this seemed like at the moment. A dream-come-true. His body shifted next to her small frame, and he joined the flower girl in the brightly lit field.

"You seem tensed," she giggled again at him, fiddling with some flowers she'd picked. He could not see her face, but everything else was clear as glass.

"Aerith, I... I don't know what to say..." Cloud was hushed by the brunette's sweet voice.

"I'm glad you came, Cloud. It's been too long since you've seen me."

_Doesn't she mean, seen each other?_

"You've been here every day since Sephiroth's death." Aerith confirmed, bubbliness still in her innocent tone. Cloud winced at his enemy's name. "I had a feeling you'd move on. But I know you better, Cloud. I gave it a while, even though I highly doubted it. I see now that maybe I should have sooner."

Utterly confused by her words, as he always was, Cloud sat silently with the feeling that if he spoke, he would just waste his breath. He knew she was right about one thing: she did know him better. He used to think maybe she knew him better than he knew himself. And so that fact proved itself once again. Aerith sat silently, not breaking the silence, obviously knowing Cloud would do that. Trying to prove her wrong just once, was a fail. Cloud broke their un-awkward silence, buzzing with questions.

_Maybe she'll make more sense if I confront her._

"Every time I came here, to see you, Aerith, you would never show. I waited for as long as I could without worrying the others. But you would never come."

Aerith giggled again. Usually this would annoy someone, but with Cloud, whatever Aerith did was always fine with him. She never bothered him, only made sense in the end to all his problems and thoughts. He came to her memories for peace. And that's when he realised, she was probably just another memory.

"Of course, I had good reason. I believe I have already explained this just a while before, though, yes?"

Aerith did not giggle this time, and Cloud accepted that. Everything simple she seemed to do made sense to him. They understood each other in different and strange ways.

_Did I miss something she said? _

"You might have to refresh my memory."

This made Cloud smile slightly as he spoke the words. Something he hadn't done in so long. That made him feel strange, and the smile disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

"Then so I shall." Aerith then stopped playing with the petals in her hands and reached out for Cloud's arm. He pulled his arm back so she grabbed his hand instead.

_And I thought just being close to her was electrifying... Her touch is so..._

His thoughts trailed off as Aerith rose to her feet, pulling Cloud with her. He still did not see her face, for she turned around and began walking back the way he had came, her arm stretched behind her in a tight grip with Cloud's hand. The SOLDIER followed her dazily, keeping his posture so not to end up falling over her or worse, ending the memory. After a few seconds of long strides through the soft flowers, Aerith stopped in a field of tulips. Her hand was still in his and he began to feel her pull him closer to her from behind. He did as she commanded and stood close behind her, joining both his hands in hers as she outstretched them slightly from behind. He, being 4 inches - exactly - taller than her, placed his head closer to hers, his nose brushing against her silky hair. It was intoxicating, the scent of her was like bringing a freshly picked flower to your nose.

"Marlene was trying to catch a butterfly today,"

Cloud snapped out of his intoxication. "What?" he asked her.

"She saw a butterfly, and wanted to catch it, because it was pretty." Aerith chuckled softly, as if she were blushing. "Tifa thought that she had grown an attachment for the dear creatures. But, it was not that at all. When you go home and Tifa tells you the words of Marlene, you will understand what I mean when I tell you that she was sensing something almost familiar, perhaps, about this butterfly. Something words can't really explain, so you use the lightest ones to replace your feelings, even though they don't quite satisfy it. Like... pretty. For example, yes?"

_I don't understand what she's talking about..._

"I suppose." Cloud answered anyway, despite his confusion.

As if Aerith could sense that he was lost, she began to open up, and really tell him what she meant by this.

"I would've let her hold me, and make her lovely smile grow wider, but... I feared, perhaps she would recognise such an illusion. A smart girl, she is, you know, Cloud? If she were to find out that that was me... I'm sure she would have told Tifa. And then the spell would become looser, and looser, as people would begin to recognise my disguise. And then.. if you were to have found out... the spell would have broken. And I would be back in the lifestream, unable to watch over you anymore."

They were both silent again. All the time, Cloud was thinking over what she'd previously said, and tried to take it in. All those years he wondered why she was not there to bring him comfort, she really was. Just, he could never see her, because he wasn't looking in the right places. A butterfly. Who would have guessed?

_She suits the butterfly. Delicate and free-spirited._

Her soft hands pulled away from him, and he stood there watching her from behind.

"But... seems I've picked the right time to reveal myself to you."

"What do you mean?" Cloud asked.

"You recognised me. Well, partly. You saw me, didn't you? Before I brought you here. The butterfly! Remember?" Her voice began to sound excited.

The butterfly that made him feel... satisfied. It all made sense now.

"I knew you would, haha!" Aerith could read him so well. He didn't even say anything, and she took his silence as a stunned 'Yes, I remember'. Just then, her body spun around, her dress swinging in a way that reminded him of the leaves on a tree swaying in the wind. Her torso followed her legs and her long plait soon followed after that, revealing her face. He couldn't move then.

_After Sephiroth's death... I saw her face. And that's when I felt like this before..._

Her face was pale as always. Beautifully clear skin that shined in the bright light of this odd sun they were under. Two green hues stared into his oceanic ones, mesmerising him for a second longer. Her nose was small, but a sweet size. Just like he remembered her... she was perfect. Those two lips of hers, rosey pink just like the petals of the blossoms. She smiled at him cutely, and he felt the need to stroke her adorible face. Though, she was too far away now. And he knew, that now that she had told him she'd been watching over them... That she would possibly fade away now. And leave him to try and... 'move on'.

_I don't even know what she means by moving on. What am I supposed to do when I've only just realised why I've never been happy?_

Cloud's face hardened a little. He thought it a little harsh to be told such a thing - even though it did satisfy and answer his feelings all those years - and then be thrown back into his reality. Where he'd be unhappy all over again.

_I would have thought he had more faith in me by now._

Aerith's mind giggled to itself as she ended their memory together. Cloud kept his sight on Aerith the whole time, until he was suddenly back in the church flowers, and Aerith was not there anymore. He sighed deeply, closing his sad eyes, then left without searching for the butterfly.

_The spell's broken, because I found out. She isn't even there anymore, Cloud. Give up._

His mind ached with confusion.

Just above the tallest church beam, a light pink butterfly flapped her wings again and again, shaking off the dust that build up over the years. The butterfly watched the spikey-haired man leave her church, and then, darted down to join him just as he got to the doors.

_Cloud~! This way we can talk through our feelings. Hear me, Cloud... In your heart!_

The butterfly sent the message to him with a happy vibe. And when Cloud stopped walking, she knew that he'd gotten it.

_That whisper again... It's her, I think. Aerith? _

The butterfly landed on the door handle in front of him, resembling two petals.

_It's me! _She giggled. _You didn't think I was going to leave you without a happy ending, did you really, Cloud?_

Cloud shook his head, leaning forward. He cupped his hands and let Aerith the Butterfly climb into them.

_How is this a happy ending? I don't have you with me anymore..._

Cloud's heart trembled. Aerith was always so easy to talk to about his emotions. It would've taken weeks to recover from a conversation like this with anyone else.

_Oh, but Cloud, I'll always be with you. This is just a minor spell to get me out of the lifestream. Let's call it a... second chance at life. _

Aerith sent a smiling emotion towards Cloud.

_And you'll live the rest of your new life as a butterfly?_

He sent slight bitterness towards the creature that held a flower girl's soul.

_Nope. Just a temporary spell. _

With that, the butterfly began shaking her wings again, and Aerith's soul was taken to the top of the church beams again, without another word to Cloud.

_Aerith, please, I'm confused._

_You'll see soon enough, my bodyguard!_

The SOLDIER winced at that. Not only did he not understand what she meant, but she'd called him her bodyguard. It brought back all those memories that he tried to forget. The ones that brought pain to him all those years. Guilt filled his heart and brain, overflowing until Cloud had to squint his eyes shut to prevent another breakdown of anger.

_I failed you as a bodyguard... and I failed you as a friend..._

Cloud pushed open the church doors with angst. He walked coolly, putting on his riding goggles as he made his way to the desert where he'd desserted his vehicle. Just as he was about to climb on, a sound diverted his attention. Head turning to one side, he noticed a single black crow gawking at him through two beedy, dark eyes. All the other crows weren't around anymore. Just this one. And it wasn't just the abnormal size that made him stop and stare at the bird. Something in its eyes... the face of the crow... it looked as if it was giving an evil smile to Cloud. And the noise it'd made to make Cloud look over, sounded strangely... _familiar_. They stared at each other for a moment longer.

_She's not the only one to have used that spell in order to get out of the lifestream._

The words suddenly came into his mind, but he didn't think it for himself. After realising that the crow had sent him that message - much like Aerith had - Cloud jolted up in straight standing position, eyeing the bird with confusion. His eye brows crossed sternly.

_Who are you!_

_I killed her once. And this time, her soul will, too, pay. You won't be around long enough to watch her suffer. Tomorrow at sun rise, you will be smitten for the butterfly. But the crow also has its freedom. And you shall see..._

The crow flapped its wings furiously then flew off. Cloud couldn't move. He thought over the words carefully... _'Her soul will too pay'. _Cloud gripped the rocks for support and looked down at the dusty ground, looking for answers.

_Killed her once... K-... S-...Sephiroth. _

Of course. Aerith used the spell of turning into something else to free her body from the lifestream. Who's to say that Sephiroth couldn't do that, too? And clearly he did, unless it was just a hallucination. Which was highly unlikely. The message he'd recieved from the crow was so clear. Full of hate and revenge.

But if Aerith was now just a harmless butterfly, what was the danger of Sephiroth being a crow? Would he go around poking people's eyes out? That was definitely unlikely. But Cloud knew that whatever Sephiroth was, he'd always be a danger. And especially when Aerith was at risk. He wasn't going to let him kill her again, after so many years of grieving her death, wishing he could turn back time to push the flower girl out of the way so that Cloud got the feeling of cold metal through his abdomen, rather than her... She didn't deserve to have died. Cloud just felt as though that... he, himself, did.

_Whatever's going to happen, tomorrow at sunrise. I won't let fear take over again. I'm going to protect them all... and this time... you as well, Aerith._

In a swift movement, Cloud was rolling down the desert roads, goggles on and blonde spikes throwing themselves around his pale face. He decided not to tell anyone of what happened. A simple excuse for why he was gone so long wasn't needed. Everyone knew where he went every day of every year. Aerith's Church was the only place he found comforting anymore.

_Aerith..._


End file.
